


Poke-age

by SolarisGaudium



Category: Dragon Age (Video Games), Pocket Monsters | Pokemon - All Media Types
Genre: Alternate Universe - Dragon Age Fusion, Alternate Universe - Pokemon Fusion, Pokemon Journey
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-12-25
Updated: 2018-02-14
Packaged: 2018-05-09 08:23:35
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 10,603
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5532437
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SolarisGaudium/pseuds/SolarisGaudium
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Young Garrett Hawke is finally old enough to leave on his Pokemon journey, meeting and making new friends and allies on the way to becoming a Pokemon Master just like is father.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. The Journey Begins

“Garrett!”

A shrill, high pitched voice jarred young Garrett Hawke awake, and before he had time to react something launched onto his bed and therefore, onto him. “Garrett! Are you awake yet?” The voice yelled in his ear.

Hawke opened his eyes and saw tiny 5 year old Bethany bouncing on top of him with a huge grin. He groaned, “Now I am. What the heck Bethany?”

Bethany continued to bounce excitedly. “Garrett! Do you know what day it is?”

Hawke frowned as he tried to think of what she was talking about, still a bit foggy from sleep.

Bethany laughed. “It's your birthday silly!”

Hawke was wide awake now. “Oh yeah!” He wiggled out from under Bethany and jumped out of bed.

Bethany giggled and slid off of the bed. “Come on, Plusle!” She said as she followed Hawke out of the bedroom.

Plusle poked it's head out from under Hawke's bed, an old sock on it's head. It squeaked and ran out to follow Bethany, abandoning the sock on the floor.

Hawke ignored all of this as he hurried down the hall into the main room where his mother was cooking breakfast.

Leandra turned and smiled at Hawke. “Good morning, dear. Did you sleep well?”

Hawke nodded. “Yup! No thanks to _Bethany_.” He glared at his younger sister who just stood next to him with an innocent grin.

Leandra laughed. “Well, I'm sure she was just excited. Today is a big day for you.”

Hawke sat down at the kitchen table, slightly bouncing in his seat. “I can't wait! Once I go talk to Professor Flemeth I'll finally be able to go on my Pokemon journey!”

“Professor Flemeth is weird,” A grumpy sounding voice came from the hall. Carver stood at the entrance to the room rubbing his eyes, his hair tousled and clothes rumpled. Standing next to him is a concerned Minun looking up at him, making sure Carver didn't trip over anything.

“Carver, it's not nice to call people weird. Especially your elders!” Leandra scolded, waving her wooden spoon at the young boy.

Bethany nodded sagely “But she is weird, she can turn into Giratina!” Plusle nodded as well, imitating it's master.

Hawke frowned. “Professor Flemeth is a Pokemon Professor, not a witch!”

Carver walked over and sat at the table across from his siblings. “Of course she isn't. That’s just baloney!”

Bethany nodded “Well you believed that there was a Ghastly hiding under your bed for weeks!”

Carver scowled, “That's just ‘cuz you hid under my bed making creepy noises!”

“Settle down children,” Leandra said as Bethany cackled wickedly. She placed a plate of pancakes in front of each of her children before sitting down at the table with her own plate.

Hawke dug into his pancakes the moment they were placed in front of him, finishing them rapidly. He placed his fork on the table and looked up at his mom. “I'm done, can I go now?”

Leandra laughed lightly, “A little impatient are we?”

Hawke nodded sheepishly, “Maybe a little bit.”

Leandra chuckled. “Well, I have something for you before you leave.” She stood up and picked up a small box from the kitchen counter and handed it to Hawke. “These are for you, dear.”

Hawke's eyes lit up with excitement as he tore open the box, leaving bits of cardboard on the table and floor. With an excited gasp he reverently lifted a pair of brand new shoes.

Leandra placed a gentle hand on Hawke’s shoulder. “I figured you would need some new shoes for your journey. The last thing I want is my child to wear out his shoes before his journey even begins!”

Hawke turned and hugged his mother tightly. “Thanks mom!”

Leandra hugged him back. “Of course dear. Now you'd better hurry to the lab before it becomes late.”

Hawke released his mother and quickly put on his new shoes. With a large grin he hugged his mother again, said “Goodbye mom! I won't let you down!” and quickly ran out the door into the sunshine.

“Garrett Malcolm Hawke!” Leandra called out, “I know you’re excited, but do you really want to go see Flemeth in your pajamas?”

Hawke looked down at his dragonite footie pajamas. “Oh yeah.” He turned and ran back into the house and up to his room, ignoring the giggles from Bethany and the disapproving frown from Carver.

After getting dressed in record time he raced out of the house (after giving his mom another hug) and outside. He then ran up to the tall tree in their front lawn and called out “Charizard!”

The leaves began to rustle and Charizard stuck it’s head out of the branches. It looked down at Hawke and yawned with an _I was sleeping_ expression.

Hawke laughed, “Come on, Charizard! I’m going to go see Professor Flemeth and then we get to start our journey!”

Charizard stretched out it’s wings and flew down from the tree, landing in front of Hawke.

Hawke grinned and crawled onto Charizard’s back with practised ease. He pointed towards the far side of town and said “Let’s go buddy!”

Charizard flapped his wings and flew up into the sky, just high enough to avoid hitting any rooftops.

Hawke watched as the ground sped by them, the wind whipping his face. They flew over a group of kids who were playing, and at the sight of the Charizard they began to excitedly give chase.

Charizard slowed down just a bit to give the children a fair chance, with just enough speed to stay airborne.

The children caught up just a bit and reached out for the Pokémon’s feet, but Charizard was too high for them. Hawke laughed and waved at them as they slowed down, then turned his attention back to the Pokémon lab that was rapidly approaching them.

Charizard landed at the entrance to the lab, which was a large wooden building painted white with a Pokéball symbol above the door.

Hawke slid off of Charizard’s back and patted his faithful Pokémon. “You stay out here while I go talk to Professor Flemeth, okay?”

Charizard nodded and laid down in the warm sunshine, attempting to resume the nap he had been interrupted from.

Hawke reached out to open the door, then hesitated. Now that he was actually there about to enter the Pokémon lab, the excitement from before turned into apprehension. What if Flemeth didn’t have anymore Pokédexes to give out? What if she wasn’t there? Or worse, what if she didn’t think he was worthy to go on a Pokémon journey?

As these thoughts began to rapidly go through his mind, the door in front of his opened, revealing a tall, dark skinned man with short brown hair and a curly mustache.

“Ah, I thought I heard someone out here,” the man said with a grin, “Well don’t just stand there, come in!” He opened the door wider and gestured for Hawke to walk in.

As he walked in Hawke looked around the lab in awe. Shelves filled with books and various devices lined the walls and a large ornate chandelier filled the room with a warm light, and at the back of the building was a large machine that took up most of the wall.

“Professor Flemeth is out at the moment, but she should return very soon,” the man said. He held out his hand to Hawke. “I’m Dorian Pauvus, the professor’s dashing assistant, errand boy and researcher.”

Hawke shook Dorian’s hand. “I’m Garrett Hawke. I’m getting ready to start my Pokémon journey with Charizard.”

“Ah, so that Charizard is yours? A fine specimen. You don’t find Pokémon like that around here,” Dorian placed a hand on Hawke’s shoulder, “It seems you won’t need a starter Pokémon then, so we’ll just have to wait for the Flemeth to return.” He leaned down and half whispered, “She doesn’t let me give out the Pokédexes.”

“That’s because you either break them or lose them.” A voice came from behind them, and when Hawke turned around he saw a tall woman with grey hair and piercing eyes standing behind them.

“You wound me, madam!” Dorian said dramatically, “I am very careful with the delicate machinery in this lab!”

The woman scoffed, “Perhaps when you want to be, which isn’t often,” She then turned her attention to Hawke. “And who might you be?”

The woman’s demanding presence made Hawke a bit nervous, but he tried to keep his voice steady. “My name is Garrett Hawke. You’re Professor Flemeth, right?”

“That I am,” Flemeth said, staring at Hawke as though she was examining his very soul, “From what I’ve gathered you wish to go on your Pokémon journey, correct?”

Hawke nodded, the excitement from earlier starting to return, “Yes, ma’am. I want to become a Pokémon Master, just like my father!”

“I see,” Flemeth said with a smirk, “That’s pretty ambitious. Do you know how many trainers achieve the title of Master?”

Hawke thought for a moment then shook his head.

“A very small few, and those that do spend years of their lives perfecting their craft,” Flemeth continued, “Most trainers lose interest within the first few months. Are you sure you have what it takes?”

Hawke stood up straight and met Flemeth’s eye with determination. “I will do whatever it takes to become the best. If my dad could do it, then so can I!”

Flemeth stared at him for a moment, then grinned. “Well, you have confidence, that’s something at least.” She walked to one of the shelves and took a Pokédex down, and after pushing a few of the buttons she handed it to Hawke. “Take this and get started on your journey. It contains all of the current knowledge of Pokémon and anything else you might need to know.”

Hawke took the Pokédex in awe and ran his fingers over the cover, the smooth shiny red metal flashed in the light. He looked up at Flemeth and said with a grin “Thank you Professor!”

“Don’t thank me yet, you still have quite the journey ahead of you,” Flemeth said. “I doubt we’ll cross paths again anytime soon, but if I need anything from you I’ll send Mr. Pavus. If he doesn’t get lost on the way that is.”

Dorian clutched at his heart dramatically, “Your lack of faith in me is disturbing Flemeth.”

Flemeth waved him off like an annoying fly and started walking towards the back of the room. “I suggest you get moving, Hawke. The daylight won’t last forever.”

Hawke nodded, turned to Dorian and said “See you later Dorian!” Then ran out of the lab.

“Good luck, Hawke!” Dorian said as he saluted to the boy, then began examining one of the books on the shelf nearest to him.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

Hawke ran out of the lab with a large grin on his face. Finally, he was going on his adventure!

Charizard was still sleeping in the same spot as before, wisps of smoke trailing from its nostrils as it lightly snored.

“Hey, buddy!” Hawke said as he approached, “I got my Pokédex!” He held out the brand new Pokédex in front of Charizard.

Charizard lazily opened an eye, then yawned and sat up.

Hawke laughed, “Come on you lazy dragon, we have to go on our journey!”

“Charizard’s aren’t dragon types, remember?” A voice called out from behind Hawke, causing him to turn around. A tall young girl with red hair and light freckles stood behind him.

“Aveline! What are you doing here?” asked Hawke surprised.

“You’re mom told me you were here getting your Pokédex, so I came to say hi,” Aveline answered with a grin, “And it looks like I made it just in time.”

Hawke smiled proudly, “Yup! Charizard and I are about to head out on our journey! I’m going to become a Pokémon master just like my Dad!”

“I see,” Aveline said, “Mind if I come with you?”

Hawke tilted his head inquisitively, “Why would you wanna come with me? Aren’t you a little old to go on a Pokémon journey?”

Aveline scowled, “I’m not that old! I’m only thirteen! Besides, I want to apply for the city guard someday and it wouldn’t hurt to get some training.”

Hawke pondered this for a moment, then shrugged. “Alright, I guess you can come along. It’ll be nice to have some company.”

Aveline grinned, “Great! Let’s get going then.”

“HOLD IT!”

In synch Hawke and Aveline turn around and see a boy with shaggy blonde hair and light brown eyes standing a few feet away from them. He was panting like he had been running and a few strands of hair hung over his eyes. With a gleam in his eye he pointed at Hawke and said “You’re not going anywhere until you battle me!”

Hawke gave him a confused look. “Anders? What are you doing here?”

Anders scowled at Hawke. “Don’t change the subject! If you must know, I heard you were coming here and I knew that now was my chance to finally battle you on equal ground!”

“Equal ground?” Aveline scoffed, “and just what is that supposed to mean?”

Anders huffed impatiently, “It means that we’re both Pokèmon trainers now, and I want Hawke’s first loss to belong to me!”

Hawke gave Anders an incredulous look, “Loss? Please, my Charizard would beat you any day!”

“Then prove it!” Anders challenged, taking a Pokèball from his belt and holding it out.

Hawke grinned and shook his head. “Alright, if you’re sure.” He turned to Charizard, who was watching the exchange curiously, and said “Ready to win buddy?”

Charizard nodded and with a few flaps of its massive wings it stood in front of its trainer.

Anders smirked, “Your Charizard will easily be defeated by Justice!” He threw his Pokèball and released an Espeon, the gem on its forehead pulsing slightly.

“We’ll see about that!” Hawke shouted. “Charizard, use flamethrower!”

Charizard opened its mouth and breathed a stream of fire at Justice.

“Justice! Dodge and use Future Sight!” Anders commanded.

Justice jumped out of the way of the fire and used its abilities to predict a future move Charizard would make. A sparking blue orb appeared over the Espeon before vanishing from sight.

“Future Sight? That's such a lame move!” Hawke taunted, “Charizard, use Fly!”

Charizard flapped its wings and flew up high in the air, casting a large shadow onto Justice, then dive bombed at the Pokémon with alarming speed.

Just before Charizard reached its target Anders shouted “Justice! Substitute!”

Justice’s gem glowed brightly and in an instant a small, pale green toy-looking dinosaur stood in the Pokémon’s place.

Charizard rammed into the substitute at full force, causing the substitute to explode into a cloud of pink smoke, blinding the Pokémon.

“Take the attacks like a man, Anders!” Hawke yelled as Charizard landed.

Anders ignored him and yelled “Justice! Use wish and then Psybeam!”

Justice cast wish, a wave of sparkles emerging from its gem and cascading down over it.

“Quick Charizard, use flamethrower!” Hawke shouted.

Before Justice could react, Charizard let loose a stream of flames that engulfed the Espeon.

“Justice!” Anders called out, worry etched on his face as he tried to see through the flames.

The fire dispersed and reveal a battered Espeon, struggling to stay standing. Suddenly the blue orb appeared in front of Charizard, then rammed into the large Pokémon’s chest.

Charizard roared with pain and took a step back as blue psychic energy coursed through its body.

“Charizard!” Hawke shouted, “are you alright?”

Anders laughed, “lame move huh? Looks like it's doing quite a bit of damage to you now!”

Hawke scowled, “Charizard, let's finish this with a Flame Wheel!”

Charizard roared and breathed out a stream of flames that circled around Justice, engulfing it once more.

Anders’ laughter stopped short as his mocking expression turned into shock. “Justice, no!”

The flames disappeared, showing a fainted and singed Espeon laying on the ground.

Anders ran up to his Pokémon and fell to the ground, ignoring the smoking grass. “Justice, are you alright? Stay with me!”

Before Hawke could say anything the sound of someone clapping came from behind him. He turned and saw a grinning Dorian standing next to Aveline.

“Bravo, Hawke!” He said, “that was a truly inspiring battle!”

Hawke grinned, “Thanks Dorian! How long have you been watching?”

Dorian stopped clapping, “Oh, I came to see what all the shouting was about just as you two started.” He then turned his attention to Anders. “Bring in your Espeon and we'll get it back up and fighting in no time.”

Anders stood up with Justice laying limp in his arms and nodded. He walked up to Dorian with a solemn expression, then said to Hawke with a begrudging tone “Not bad, Hawke, but next time I won't go easy on you.”

Hawke grinned and patted Anders on the back. “I look forward to it, Anders!”

Anders smirked, then followed Dorian into the lab.

Before he closed the door Dorian half whispered to Hawke, “I suggest getting out of here before Flemeth sees what you did to her lawn!” Then closed the door behind him.

Hawke's eye grew wide with genuine fear. “Come on Aveline, let's get out of here!” He said, then ran into the woods, Charizard following after him.

Aveline ran after him and shook her head disapprovingly, “You shouldn't run away from your mess, Hawke!”

Hawke laughed, “I'll keep that in mind, _mom!_ ” and continued running.


	2. Some New Friends

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hawke and Aveline meet a charismatic kid called Varric and a cheerful little girl named Merrill.

The sun was high up in the sky as Hawke and Aveline walked through the woods with Charizard lazily flying overhead.

Aveline looked up at the Pokémon, then back down at Hawke. “Why doesn’t Charizard stay in it’s Pokéball?” she asked curiously.

Hawke shrugged. “I dunno. I think it just likes to see what’s going on in the world. Besides, Mom never put it back in it’s Pokéball since Dad died, so I don’t see the need to.”

Aveline nodded with understanding and didn’t say anything else, which Hawke was grateful for. It was still difficult for him to talk about his Dad, Malcolm Hawke. He was a powerful Pokémon trainer who eventually gained the title ‘Champion.’ 

That was all before he met Leandra. They fell in love and, despite her family’s wishes they got married, and Malcolm gave up his title in order to help his new wife raise their family. 

But then tragedy struck when Malcolm became very ill a couple years ago. Despite everything they tried he never got better, until he eventually passed away.

Hawke was pulled out of his thoughts when Aveline put a hand on his arm, stopping him. “Did you hear that?” she asked softly with a hint of urgency.

Hawke listened closely, not hearing anything at first. He jumped slightly at the sound of rustling leaves and looked for the source, finally locating a rustling bush.

Charizard landed with a thud behind Hawke, curious as to why they stopped.

Hawke cautiously took a step toward the bush, and when he was just a few steps away he fell backwards with a yell as a small creature leapt out of the bush at him.

“Hawke! Are you okay?” Aveline shouted while running up to him. The creature leaped off of Hawke and into the air, then landed a few feet away.

Hawke rubbed his head as he stood up. “I’m fine. What the heck was that?” He looked over at where the creature landed and was able to get a good look at it. It was a bird-like Pokémon with red and green feathers.

“Use your Pokédex, that’ll tell you,” Aveline said as she stared at the Pokémon warily.

“Oh yeah!” Hawke pulled his Pokédex from his pocket and opened it. An electronic voice came from the device as a picture of the Pokémon appeared on the screen:

_Hawlucha, the Wrestling Pokémon. Although its body is small, its proficient fighting skills enable it to keep up with big bruisers like Machamp and Hariyama. With its wings, it controls its position in the air. It likes to attack from above, a maneuver that is difficult to defend against._

As if in response the Hawlucha ruffled it’s feathers and shifted into an offensive position.

“That Hawlucha looks pretty hostile,” Aveline said in a warning tone, “We should be careful.”

“I want to catch it!” Hawke exclaimed with a large grin. He pointed at the Hawlucha, “Prepare to become a part of my team, Hawlucha!”

The Hawlucha leapt into the air with incredible speed and flew towards Hawke.

Hawke’s grin turned into a determined smirk. “Charizard! Use Flamethrower!”

Charizard breathed out a stream of flame at the Hawlucha, forcing it to change course and fly straight up to avoid the attack. It then used its speed and agility to fly around Charizard and head straight for Hawke.

“What the-!” Hawke yelled out as he dove to the side. He quickly turned around just in time to see the Hawlucha land where Hawke was previously standing with its wings stretched out.

“Hawke!” Aveline called out as she ran towards him,”Are you alright?!”.

“Yeah, I think so,” Hawke said as he stood up, “What was that all about, Hawlucha?”

In response, Hawlucha ran towards Hawke screeching.

“Charizard, help!” Hawke cried as he dove out of the way again. Charizard whipped its tail at the ground in front of Hawlucha and tripped it, sending the Pokémon sprawling. Charizard then used Flamethrower once again, this time landing a direct hit.

As the flames began to dissipate Hawke stood up and braced himself for whatever attack may come next.

Something shot up into the air from the flames and hid in the blinding sun, then came back down at Hawke.

This time Hawke wasn’t quick enough and got rammed in the chest by Hawlucha, knocking the air out of him. Hawke coughed and tried to move, but the bird Pokémon pinned him to the ground, screeching in his face.

“Oh no, Hawke!” Aveline yelled out as she ran to him, then stopped when Hawlucha screeched at her in warning. “Are you okay?”

Hawke coughed again and replied in a weak voice, “Yeah.” He struggled under the strong Pokémon’s grip to get free. _Wow, this thing is strong!_ He thought to himself, _Which makes me want it even more!_ Ignoring the pain he gathered his strength and rolled over to pin Hawlucha to the ground.

Hawlucha screeched and tried to Peck him, forcing the boy off, then glared angrily and charged at Hawke again.

Charizard flew in between them, taking the full force of the attack. It roared a challenge and Headbutted the Pokémon, then used Flame Wheel to pin it in place.

Hawlucha screeched angrily and struggled against the flames but kept jerking back from the searing heat. With a defiant screech it jumped through the fire and rolled to put out the flames, then stood glaring at Hawke.

Hawke stepped back nervously, preparing to jump out of the way again.

Hawlucha took a step forward, then fell to the ground, some of its feathers smoking a bit.

Hawke jumped and whooped, “Yeah! Hawlucha is mine!” He reached for a Pokéball from his belt but found only air. “Huh?” He looked down and searched his belt, but only found Charizard’s Pokéball.

Aveline sighed and held out a Pokéball, “Here, take one of mine.”

Hawke grinned sheepishly, “Thanks Aveline.” He then threw the Pokéball at Hawlucha and with a click it opened and snatched the Pokémon. It dropped to the ground and began to wobble back and forth as the Hawlucha fought against it.

Hawke watched the Pokéball intently, willing the device to succeed, and with a low dong the Pokéball stopped wobbling and sat still in the grass. “Yes!” Hawke cheered and ran over to pick up the Pokéball. “Hawlucha is mine!”

Aveline shook her head, “Are you sure you want such an aggressive Pokémon? It kept trying to attack you!”

Hawke shrugged, “I’m sure Hawlucha will come around eventually.”

A slow clap from the trees interrupted them. They turn to look and see a stocky kid step out from the trees, still clapping. “That was pretty impressive,” he said with a lazy grin, “That Hawlucha was pretty feisty.”

Aveline stared at him with suspicion. “Were you there the whole time? Who are you?”

The kid stopped clapping and put his hands in his pockets. “I heard the commotion and decided to come see what was up. The name’s Varric Tethras, a pleasure to meet you.”

Aveline narrowed her eyes, still a bit wary, “Nice to meet you, I’m Aveline and this is Garrett Hawke. If you don’t mind my asking, just how old are you?”

Varric shrugged, “I don’t mind. I’m 13 years old.”

Hawke’s eyes widen with surprise. “13? But you’re so sho-” Aveline elbowed him hard in the side, “Ow! uh, I mean young-looking.”

Varric chuckled, “It’s the height, isn’t it? Let’s just say it’s a common thing where I’m from.” Varric cocked his head mischievously, “You know, I could use great skills like yours, Garrett.”

Hawke smiled proudly at the compliment, “I learned from the best! What can I help you with?”

“Hold on, Hawke,” Aveline said grabbing his arm, “We barely know him! You should be more cautious when dealing with kids you don’t know.”

Hawke pulled his arm free, “Don’t worry so much, Aveline! I know what I’m doing.” He turned back to Varric, “What can we help you with?”

“Well, there’s this cave nearby that are rumored to connect to the Deep Roads, ever heard of them?”

Aveline frowned, “The Deep Roads are extremely dangerous, full of tainted Pokémon. Not even the strongest Trainers go there.”  
“Perhaps,” Varric said, “but some people go down there for the relics that were left behind. This cave in particular hasn’t been explored, so my brother wants to see what’s down there. Are you interested in coming with?”

Hawke thought about this carefully. His mother warned him about the Deep Roads and how dangerous they are; full of dangerous blighted Pokémon that could taint humans that would eventually end in death. No one went there unless they had a death wish. “I don’t know,” Hawke said uncertainly, “it does sounds dangerous.”

“I could make it worth your while,” Varric said in response, “I have a lot of Pokéballs and Potions I don’t use; I would be more than willing to give them to you as payment for helping me.”

Hawke’s eyes lit up at the suggestion and was about to open his mouth when Aveline grabbed his arm and pulled him aside, “Hawke, we don’t know this kid, and anyone who wants to explore the Deep Roads shouldn’t be trusted.”

Hawke frowned, “but he’s offering Pokéballs and Potions! We need those!”

Aveline shook her head. “But it’s the Deep Roads! They’re the most dangerous area in the world!”

Varric cleared his throat politely, “If it would make you feel better, the entrance is a bit of a ways away. We could travel there together, and then you can make your final decision once we get there.”

Hawke looked up at Aveline with puppy eyes and said in a soft, pleading voice, “Please, Aveline?”

Aveline narrowed her eyes, then sighed frustrated. “Fine, but only because we’re traveling the same way.”

Hawke smiled broadly and hugged Aveline. “Thanks Aveline!” He then turned to Varric with a more serious expression. “We would love to travel with you, Varric.”

Varric chuckled, “Well, I look forward to traveling with you too.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

For the next few days Hawke, Aveline and Varric traveled together towards Redcliffe with Charizard flying overhead. Hawke and Varric talked constantly, getting to know each other quite well, with Aveline adding to conversation now and then. Hawke greatly enjoyed the stories Varric told, even if some of them seemed unbelievable.

“And then!” Varric exclaimed, “Then the Kangaskhan charged at Bartrand! I had never seen him climb a tree faster in my life!”

Hawke roared with laughter and wiped a fake tear from his eye. “Oh man, that sounds hilarious!”

Aveline frowned. “It’s what he gets for messing with the baby. Everyone knows not to mess with a baby Kangaskhan.”

“Exactly,” Varric agreed with a large grin, “That’s what made it so funny.”

Hawke continued to grin and was about to say something when a loud rumbling noise erupted from his stomach. “Whoops, guess I’m a bit hungry,” he said.

Varric grinned, “Then we should find something to eat. Did you bring anything?”

Hawke thought for a moment before frowning, “No, not really. I think I forgot to pack food.”

Aveline sighed, “Hawke, you’re supposed to be more prepared than this! Luckily for you I always come prepared.” She took her shoulder bag off and opened it, revealing a bag of trail mix and a couple of carrots.

Hawke grimaced, “that’s not food, that’s for a Buneary!”

Aveline scowled, “It’s good for you Hawke. Now either eat or starve.”

Hawke frowned and reluctantly took out the smallest carrot he could find. He stared at it before taking a small bite and chewing slowly. 

Aveline smiled, “There, see? It’s not that bad!”

Hawke just glared at her as he continued to slowly eat his carrot.

Varric finished eating the carrot he chose then looked at Aveline’s bag doubtfully. “That will do alright for now, but I don’t think it will last long.”

Aveline clutched her bag a bit defensively, “Well I wasn’t planning on being the only one who brought food. Besides, I don’t see you offering anything!”

Varric shrugged, “I finished my rations a while ago and figured I could stock up again in Redcliffe.”

Hawke took one last painful bite of his carrot before tossing the end into the trees.

Aveline scowled at him, “That’s a waste Hawke!”

“Hey, I ate all that I could!” Hawke protested, “besides, I’m sure a Starly or something will find it and be very happy.”

Aveline groaned and shook her head, “Hawke you can be impossible sometimes!”

They continued walking down the path as Hawke and Aveline bickered with Varric just enjoying the show and putting in his opinion now and then. They followed around the bend of the road and fell silent at the sight of a large field of flowers. Flabébé, Bellossom and other various plant type Pokémon could be seen frolicking and playing amidst the flowers while some Butterfree and Beautifly were darting from flower to flower.

“It looks like something out of a fairytale,” Aveline muttered.

Hawke was about to respond when he noticed what looked to be a young girl lying in the middle of the field, her eyes closed. “Hey,” Hawke said to his friends, “Do you think she’s okay?”

Varric shrugged, “Only one way to find out.” He started walking towards the girl, careful to avoid disturbing any Pokémon.

Hawke and Aveline quickly followed him, taking the same path as Varric. They all reached the girl and Hawke tentatively asked, “Hey, are you okay?”

The girl opened her eyes, revealing large green eyes. Strange tattoos decorate her face and her short black hair was full of tiny ponytails. “Oh! Hello” the girl exclaimed as she sat up, “I’m just fine, thank you for asking. I was just sleeping. It’s always so nice to sleep to the sound of cheerful Pokémon, don’t you think?”

Her broad smile was contagious as Hawke found himself grinning back, “Yeah, I guess so.” He motioned to his friends, “I’m Hawke and these are my friends Aveline and Varric.”  
Aveline nodded her head in response, also grinning, and Varric gave her a lazy smile.

“Pleasure to meet you!” The girl said. She stood up and held out her hand, “My name is Merrill.”

Hawke noticed that Merrill had an accent, but he couldn’t place it. “Where are you from, Merrill?” he asked.

Merrill turned and pointed in the opposite direction, “Over there. My parents live just about a mile that way.”

“You live in the woods?” Aveline asked doubtfully.

Merrill nodded enthusiastically, either not noticing or not caring about Aveline’s tone “Yes, we do! We enjoy being among nature, so we just camp wherever we end up until it’s time to move on again.”

“So you’re nomads,” Varric said, “That sounds exciting.”

Merrill beamed at Varric, “Oh yes, it really is! We’ve seen so much of this land and learned so many things!”

Hawke opened his mouth to ask another question when he was interrupted by a loud growling from his stomach.

“Oh, are you hungry?” Merrill asked. Not waiting for an answer she continues, “It’s almost dinner time, why don’t you all come with me and we’ll go see what my parents have prepared?”

Aveline help up her hands politely, “Oh, we wouldn’t want to intrude. Besides, you’re parents won’t be expecting us.”

Merrill shook her head, “Oh, don’t worry about that! They always make enough to feed a whole clan!”

Varric looked up at Aveline with a grin, “It looks like this is our lucky day.”

Hawke also looked up at Aveline with a puppydog look, “Can we go, Aveline? Please?”

Aveline sighed in defeat, “Alright, fine,” she turned back to Merrill, “thank you for the invitation. We would love to have dinner with you and your family, as long as your parents are okay with it.”

Merrill jumped and clapped excitedly, “Oh wonderful! Come on, it’s this way!” She turned and started skipping through the flowers towards the trees.

They all followed her to another clearing where a large tent stood on one side and a fire crackling in the center. An older woman with markings very similar to Merrill's was adding wood to the fire when she looked up at the approaching group. “Merrill!” She said with a kind smile, “You’re back! And you brought friends.”

Merrill nodded, “Yup! This is Hawke, Varric and Aveline. Is it alright if they eat dinner with us?”

“Of course it’s alright!” A man crawled out of the tent and approached them; Hawke noticed that this man’s tattoos were simpler than his wife and daughter’s, but it still had the similar flowing style. “We have plenty of food, right dear?” 

The Merrill’s mom nodded, “We always do,” she waved the group over, “Come, sit down! Dinner should be ready in a few moments.”

The three kids walk over and sit down around the fire. It was still light out, so they didn’t sit too close.

As soon as everyone was settled Merrill’s mom started handing out bowls to everyone. “I always knew we would need extra bowls!” she said as she handed the last one to her husband. Once the bowls and utensils were distributed she brought over a large pot of stew and placed it on a stump near the fire. “Everyone, please help yourselves! There’s plenty for all of us.”

They all took turns ladling out some of the stew. Once Hawke filled his bowl he carefully scooped some out with his spoon and hesitantly took a bite. He wasn’t sure what he was expecting, but it wasn’t this! The amazing flavors filled his mouth and he began to eat more quickly, nearly scarfing down his food like the pancakes from before he left. Soon his bowl was empty and he began to ladle some more out of the pot. “This is amazing!” he exclaimed.

Merrill’s mom grinned. “Oh, I’m so happy you like it! It’s an old family recipe.”

Merrill nodded, “My mom’s an amazing cook! She always has so much fun, that’s why she makes so much.”

“She sure is amazing,” Merrill’s dad added, “And that’s why I married her.”

“Oh, stop it you two, you’re embarrassing me!” Merrill’s mom said jokingly.

Hawke took another bite of stew when a loud thump came from behind him almost knocking him out of his seat. He looked back and saw Charizard sniffing his bowl curiously. “Charizard! I was wondering where you went!”

“Oh my, what a stunning Pokémon!” Merrill’s dad exclaimed in awe, “Is he yours, Hawke?”

Hawke nodded proudly, “Yup! He used to be my dad’s, but now he’s traveling with me.”

Merrill stared at Charizard, her eyes sparkling. “You’re a Pokémon trainer? So am I!” She stood up and pointed at Hawke dramatically, “Hawke, I challenge you to a battle!” She then lowered her arm a bit and added, “if you want to that is.”

Hawke looked up at her with a smirk, “Alright, but just know that I’m pretty good.”

Merrill clapped excitedly, “Yay! I haven’t battled in a long time!” Her expression shifted slightly into a more serious one, “but that doesn’t mean I won’t win. I’m pretty good myself.”

Hawke put down his bowl and stood up. “Then let’s battle!”

Merrill’s dad chuckled, “Now kids, I’m okay with you battling, but maybe you should move to somewhere that isn’t where everyone is sitting and enjoying their meal?”

Hawke grinned sheepishly, “Oh yeah, sure.” He walked past Varric how tapped him on the arm and said in a low voice, “Maybe you should go a bit easy on her?”

Hawke glanced up at Merrill, who was now investigating a small patch of flowers on the edge of the clearing. He whispered back, “Okay, maybe. But we’ll see.”

Hawke moved over to where Merrill was and smirked, “Are you ready, Merrill?”

Merrill jumped up and nodded enthusiastically, “You bet! Prepare to lose!”


	3. Let the Battle Begin!

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The battle between Hawke and Merrill is starting and Hawke is pretty confident with his abilities. But does he underestimate his foe too much?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for your patience!! School really took up a ton of my time, but now finals are over and I can get back to this!

Hawke stood across from Merrill, his hand over the Pokéball on his belt and Charizard waiting patiently behind him. Aveline volunteered to be the referee while Varric and 

Merrill’s parents all sat around the fire watching the two trainers as they stared down each other.

Hawke examined Merrill closely. Alright, judging from her personality and that we found her in a flower field, she might have a lot of Grass types. Charizard could take them out easily, so I should send it out first-

“Are you going to just stand there?” Varric’s voice called out, interrupting Hawke’s train of thought.

Hawke glared at him briefly. “A good trainer always evaluates his opponent before battle!”

Merrill clapped. “Ooo, you sound so professional!” She pulled out a Pokéball from a small satchel on her leather belt. “I can’t wait to see what you can do!”

Hawke smirked, “Same to you.”

Aveline looked at the two opponents. “Alright you two, I want a fair fight. First one to have all of their Pokémon faint loses!” She looked over at Hawke and added, “And try not to burn down the forest!” Before Hawke could retaliate, Aveline shouted “Ready, go!”

Hawke pointed out and commanded, “Charizard, I choose you!”

Charizard flapped once to get over it’s trainer and land with a loud thud.

“I’ve never fought a Charizard before!” Merrill exclaimed before throwing her Pokéball. “I choose you, Deery!”

The ball opened and a Deerling appeared, it’s green coat matching the grass beneath it.

Hawke grinned triumphantly. Just as I thought! “Charizard, use flamethrower!”

Charizard breathed out a large stream of fire at the Grass Pokémon.

“Dodge and use Sand Attack!” Merrill commanded.

Deery jumped nimbly out of the way and used it’s hind hooves to kick dirt at Charizard’s face, effectively blinding it.

“Wonderful job!” Merrill cheered.

Hawke scowled. “Charizard, are you okay?”

Charizard growled in response, shaking it’s head back and forth in an attempt to clear the dirt.

“Deery, use double kick!” Merrill called out.

Deery charged at Charizard and flipped around to kick it, not really doing much damage.

“Charizard, use Fly!” Hawke commanded.

Charizard dislodged a bit more dirt and flew up above the canopy out of sight.

Merrill looked up at the spot that Charizard disappeared. “Look out, Deery,” she said nervously.

Charizard then burst through the trees and rammed into the Deerling, sending it sprawling.

“Deery!” Merrill cried out, “Oh, Deery are you alright?”

Deery attempted to stand, but collapsed to the ground instead.

Aveline raised her hand. “Charizard is the winner!”

Hawke cheered. “Alright! Get job, buddy!”  
Merrill ran over and knelt down by Deery. “Don’t worry, you did great! Just go ahead and rest now.” She returned the Pokémon to it’s Pokéball and returned to her spot. She then gave Hawke a wicked grin. “Time for more of a challenge, Hawke!” she pulled out another Pokéball and threw it, “let’s go, Granite!

Hawke took a step back and watched as the white form emerging from the Pokéball continued to grow. How big is this thing!?

The form stops growing and the light bursts to reveal a Regirock, it’s massive boulder arms slamming into the ground.

Hawke could hear Varric laughing, “Wow! Hawke, you might want to watch your back!” Hawke ignored him and just stared at the Pokémon in disbelief. How did she catch a Regirock?! Those are really rare!

Aveline clears her throat to get Hawke’s attention. “Ready, go!”

“Granite, use Hammer Arm!” Merrill commanded.

“Ah! Charizard, dodge it quick!” Hawke called out. 

Charizard lifted its wings to fly, but Hawke’s delayed command was all Granite needed for its attack to land. Charizard hit the ground hard, landing on one of its wings. It slowly stood up, its wing hanging limp, and roared at the Regirock.

“Use Flamethrower!” Hawke called out, his voice unsteady.

“Granite, use Rock Throw!” Merrill commanded.

Charizard let loose a stream of fire at the Regirock, but it did nothing to affect the rock Pokémon. In retaliation Granite swung its massive arm and threw one of its rocks at Charizard.

Charizard attempted to move out of the way, but its damaged wing slowed its movements and fell to the ground from the force of the blow.

“Charizard!” Hawke yelled, “Charizard, get up!”

Charizard struggled to stand, but too much damage had been done and it fell back onto the ground.

Aveline raised her arm to signal the end of the battle. “And the winner is Granite!”

Hawke ran over and knelt down by Charizard. “Hey buddy, are you alright?” Charizard growled in reply, unable to move from its injuries.

Merrill stepped forward, concerned. “Is Charizard alright? Why don’t you put him in his Pokéball?”

Hawke looked up at her with a slightly sheepish expression. “Ah, well, I haven’t put it in a Pokéball in a long time.”

Merrill tilted her head quizzically. “Oh, okay. Do you need help moving him?”

Hawke nodded nodded and Merrill looked up at Granite. “Hey, Granite, mind giving us a hand?”

Granite beeped and approached Charizard, lifted it, then moved closer to the fire before gently placing Charizard on the ground next to Merrill’s parents.

Merrill smiled broadly at Hawke. “There, my parents can take care of him while we continue the battle!”

Hawke looked over at Charizard nervously before nodding at Merrill. “Thanks.”

The two of them returned to their places and Hawke pulled out his last Pokéball, the one containing Hawlucha.

Aveline raised her arm and said loudly, “Ready, start!”

Hawke threw his Pokéball, “Hawlucha, I choose you!”

Hawlucha emerged from its Pokéball and looked around, completely ignoring Granite.

“Hawlucha! Use Acrobatics!” Hawke called out. Inwardly he hoped that Hawlucha knew this attack; it was the first one that popped into his head.

Hawlucha ignored Hawke and began to investigate the battle arena.

Hawke could feel his face grow red with both embarrassment and frustration as he heard Varric laugh. “Hawlucha!” He shouted, “attack Granite!” but the Pokémon continued to ignore him.

“Granite! Use Rock Throw!” Merrill commanded, and the Regirock threw a rock from its arm towards the bird Pokémon. 

Hawlucha looked up too late and was unable to dodge the attack, the rock hitting it square in the chest and throwing it across the field.

“Hawlucha!” Hawke yelled out, but the Pokémon was unresponsive.

Aveline raised her hand towards Merrill. “And the winner is Merrill!”

Merrill jumped up and down excitedly and hugged Granite, looking like a frail twig compared to the 5’7” Pokémon, before returning it to its Pokéball.

Hawke sighed and hung his head in defeat. He returned Hawlucha to it’s Pokéball and looked up at Merrill with a slightly dissapointed smile. “Great job, Merrill.”

Merrill bounded up to Hawke and gave him a hug. “You did great too, Hawke! Maybe next time you’ll win.”

Hawke hugged her back, having to bend down a bit to match the small girl’s height. “Yeah, maybe,” he said as he stood up and turned back toward the group.

Merrill hurried over to her parents, who each hugged her while grinning. “Congratulations, sweetie!” her father told her.

Hawke and Aveline sat down next to Varric, who was writing in a small notebook. Without looking up he said, “That was pretty impressive Hawke. Who knew she would have a giant bolder for a Pokémon!”

Hawke sighed and bowed his head again before looking over where Charizard was resting. “Yeah, well I won’t be thrown off guard next time!”

“That’s the spirit!” Aveline said patting his shoulder.

Hawke grinned at her before looking at Varric again, “what are you writing, Varric?”

Varric grinned and held up his notebook. “I’m taking notes. I want to be a writer, and this battle really inspired me!”

Aveline raised an eyebrow. “Write what exactly?”

Varric nodded at Hawke. “At the moment, it’s Hawke’s adventures. I have a feeling that a lot of interesting things are going to happen to you.”

“Me?” Hawke asked a bit incredulously.

Before Varric could answer, Merrill’s mother approached them. “Would you like to stay with us for the night? It’s getting dark and traveling through these woods at night can be dangerous.”

The three of them looked at each other and shrugged. Hawke nodded at her with a grin. “Thanks, that would be great!”

Merrill’s mom smiled broadly. “Wonderful! Then I will go get some places prepared for you to sleep.” She left the group and began to look through their supplies.

“We sure have been lucky,” Hawke said almost to himself, “Having such a great dinner and somewhere to sleep tonight.”

Aveline nodded, frowning slightly, “Yeah, but how long will it last?”


	4. Heros and Thieves

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hawke and friends run into a new friend, but quickly find out about the storm that is brewing in their world.

The sun shone brightly through the trees the next morning, landing directly on Hawke’s eyes. With an irritated groan he rolled over and almost fell asleep again when a loud BOOM shook the ground. With a shout Hawke sat straight up and looked around at the tent he was in, confused as to where he was at first, but the memories of the night before quickly came back.

Next to him Varric scowled and rubbed his eyes. “By the Maker, can’t anyone get some shuteye around here?”

Aveline was already standing fully dressed when she grinned at Varric. “Apparently not.”

Hawke gave her a confused look and she motioned for him to look outside just as another boom shook the ground. He stepped out of the tent, still wearing his shorts and rumpled t-shirt, and saw Merrill standing in the field they fought in the day before. 

Granite was standing near her, seeming to reattach the rocks it threw everywhere. Another loud boom sounded as Granite pulled a large boulder from the ground and attached it to its arm.

Hawke watched in awe. He had heard that Regirocks used nearby boulders to build its body, but watching it in action was incredible.

Once all of the rocks had been gathered, Merrill returned Granite to its Pokéball and skipped back to where her parents were packing up their camp. She noticed Hawke and Aveline standing outside of their tent and waved at them enthusiastically. “Good morning!”

Hawke waved back while trying to hold back a yawn. “Morning, Merrill.”

Merrill changed course and skipped over to them, the tiny braids in her hair bouncing with every step. “Did you sleep well?”

Aveline nodded, “we did, thank you.” She glanced over at Merrill’s parents, “Is there anything we can do to help pack up?”

Hawke looked at her in disbelief and slight despair, “but we just woke up! Do we really have to clean?”

Merrill giggled, “Aw, come on Hawke! It won’t be that bad! We just need to pack up your tent and the surrounding items.”

Aveline looked down at Hawke with a threatening look. “We are going to help them, it’s the least we can do to thank them for their hospitality.”

Hawke shrunk from her gaze, memories from the last time he crossed her flashing through his mind. It wasn’t pretty. With a dejected sigh he nodded, “Alright, where do we start?”

Merrill pointed to their tent. “Just take down the tent, I’ll be right back to help.” With that she skipped off to where her parents were loading an intricate cart.

A loud yawn from behind Hawke made him jump. Varric stood there stretching with a lazy grin. “Well, we’d better do what Daisy asked.”

“Daisy?” Hawke asked, very confused, “You mean Merrill?”

Varric nodded, as if amused by Hawke’s reaction. “Of course, who else would I be talking about?”

Hawke pondered this for a moment before shrugging, which earned him a chuckled from Varric.

After some complications with the tent (which Hawke was positive was out to keep them and never let go until Merrill helped) the four of them rolled up the tent and helped clean up the camp until it was as though they were never there. 

Hawke was proud of their handiwork and stopped to admire it when Merrill skipped up to him. “So, I asked my parents and if it's alright with you, I would like to travel with you and your friends.”

Hawke was a bit surprised, but something hinted that this was bound to happen after the battle the night previous. With a quick glance at Aveline and Varric for confirmation he gave her a broad smile, “I don’t see why not!”

Merrill hugged Hawke tightly, squealing. “Thanks Hawke! I'll go tell Mom!” With that she hurried off back to her parents.

“This will be interesting,” Aveline commented, “Are you sure having another person with us is a good idea?”

Hawke nodded confidently, “Of course! The more the merrier!”

Aveline didn’t seem convinced but Merrill’s return quieted any further argument.

“Alright, where are we off to?” Merrill asked, bouncing slightly.

Hawke looked around a bit before pointing hesitantly in one direction. “That way looks good to me.”

“Hawke, unless you want to go home you’ll want to go the other way,” Aveline told him with an amused grin.

Hawke looked at her, then back to where he pointed before frowning. “Oh, well... I knew that! I just wanted to make sure you did too!”

Aveline shook her head, still grinning, “Of course Hawke, whatever you say.”

Hawke puffed out his chest and started marching, “Come on, we don't have all day!” He could Varric snickering, but he ignored it and kept going. In the back of his mind he made a mental note to pick up a map in a nearby town.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

With Charizard flying high over the trees, the four of them traveled onwards with companionable chatter; Aveline mothering Hawke, Varric telling Merrill his stories, and Hawke leading the way (with Aveline’s help). Eventually, they exited the forest and came upon a massive lake with shimmering waters and a small island in the middle with a tall tower.

“Oh!” Merrill gasped in delight, “It’s so beautiful!”

Hawke ran towards the water’s edge, grinning widely. He quickly threw off his shirt and ran into the water, laughing. “Come on, the water’s great!”

Merrill’s eyes grew wide with excitement as she hurried over to the water and joined Hawke, fully clothed. “Ooh! It feels lo-ve-ly!”

Aveline and Varric were slower in their approach, Varric with his trademark smirk and Aveline seeming to go into mother mode.

“Are you sure this is okay?” Aveline asked them, “we're pretty close to the Tower. The last thing we need is to get in trouble with the Templars.”

Varric shrugged, “calm down Red, the Templars are on the other side of the lake. We'll be fine.”

Aveline shot him a dissatisfied look. “Red? Really? That's the best you can come up with?”

Varric shrugged. “Hey, it’s a work in progress!”

Aveline opened her mouth to argue when something behind Hawke caught her eye. Her eyes grew with disbelief, and when Varric caught sight of it as well he started to laugh.

Hawke was very confused. “What?” he asked, when he felt the water around him try to shove him forward, nearly knocking him over. As the water began to engulf him and Merrill, he looked behind himself and nearly fell into the water in shock.

A massive mouth was grinning wickedly at him.

He would vehemently deny it later, but he screamed loudly, reaching octaves he never thought he could reach, and frantically tried to get out of the water. Over the splashing and screaming, Hawke heard a high pitched laugh coming from the creature, followed by an overly confident voice saying loudly “Prepare to be boarded, ye landlubbers!”

Hawke stared at the creature in shock and stuttered “I-it can talk?!”

The laughter came from it again, only this time Hawke thought it sounded like it was coming from above. His suspicions were confirmed when a young girl appeared on top, her hands on her hips and a cocky grin on her face. Her long black hair was tied up in a blue scarf and her dark skin seemed to glisten as though she was wet.

Merrill squealed in excitement. “Oh, is that a Wailord? It’s hu-uge!”

The girl nodded proudly. “This here be my trusty Wailord and ship! Now, hand over yer valuables and I’ll might let ye go with yer limbs!”

Hawke gave the strange creature a closer look and saw that the giant mouth was connected to a Wailord. He reached for his Pokedex, panicking when he realized that it was still in his pocket and had gotten wet. He opened it, praying that it was still working. Flemeth would kill him if he broke it this early on!

To his utter relief it turned on and scanned the Wailord

_Wailord, the Float Whale Pokémon. Wailord is the largest Pokémon yet to be discovered. It is able to jump high into the air, creating gigantic pillars of water. It can dive to a depth of almost 10,000 feet on only one breath and can sometimes knock out opponents with the shock created by breaching and crashing its big body onto the water._

The girl appeared to be getting impatient, her arms crossed. “I said hand over yer valuables! I won’t ask again!”

Hawke heard Varric chuckle behind him. “Sorry, but we don’t have anything of value. We’re just some humble trainers looking for the next town.”

“Liar! Ye can’t hide anything from me!” The girl looked down at her Pokémon, “Wailord! Use breach!”

Hawke tensed up and braced himself for the coming attack, hoping beyond hope that he didn’t hit a boulder or something.

When nothing happened Hawke slowly opened his eyes. To his surprise, Merrill was hugging the giant Pokémon, a large smile on her face as she cooed at it. 

Wailord seemed conflicted. It wanted to obey its trainer, but it also loved the attention it was currently getting and didn’t want it to end.

The girl looked frustrated, stomping her foot. “Wailord! What are you doing?! Don’t let them break you so easily!”

Wailord groaned in protest, the sound causing the water to ripple. Merrill only giggled and continued to hug the Pokémon, talking to it in what seemed to be a different language.

The girl dropped her shoulders, looking defeated, and forlornly said "Defeated again!" She slid off of Wailord and splashed in the water, a scowl on her face as she waded over to Hawke, who took a step back nervously, and held out her hand. “My name’s Isabela. Pleasure to meet you.”

Hawke looked down at her hand suspiciously before taking it in a surprisingly firm handshake. “I’m Hawke.”

Isabela’s scowl melted into a smirk. “Hawke, huh? Cool name. What are you doing in these waters?”

Hawke gave her a confused look. “What happened to your accent?”

Isabela laughed. “Oh, that? I do that just for fun, I don’t normally talk like that! How weird would that be?”

Aveline stepped forward and stood next to Hawke, examining Isabela suspiciously. “And robbing people near the Templars isn’t weird?”

“I haven’t had a problem yet." Isabela shrugged, "They pretty much stay to themselves and I don’t bother them,” her eyes then flashed mischievously, “but unattended supplies are fair game!”

“Well, that would explain why the Templars have been in a fuss lately!” Varric chuckled from behind Hawke.

“Wait, what?” Aveline asked, looking alarmed, “If the Templars are upset then that gives us even more reason to not be here!”

As if on cue, the sound of shouting caught their attention. Hawke looked towards the tower and saw a boat full of Templars heading their way, pointing and shouting at the Wailord.

“Scurvy Dogs!” Isabela shouted and ran for Wailord. She gracefully climbed the side of the Pokémon and perched herself on its head, looking down at the others. “Come aboard already! Unless you have a death wish!”

Hawke looked up at the Wailord and frowned. He had no clue how to even attempt to climb the massive Pokémon, but the shouting of the Templars gave him the motivation to try. After some scrambling (and Isabela’s help), Hawke and his friends were on top of the Pokémon.

“Sail on, Wailord!” Isabela yelled, whooping with laughter as the giant fish heaved and sailed away from the shore.

Hawke looked back and saw the Templar’s boat rapidly receding as the Poémon gained speed through the smooth waters. He let out a sigh of relief and looked back to Isabela, her hair flowing freely behind her and a massive smile was on her face. 

Hawke looked at the others and saw that Merrill was looking over the side of Wailord, her eyes wide as she watched the water lap up the sides in a white froth, and on the other side of her was Aveline, who looked a little green. Varric seemed almost bored, as though this was an everyday occurrence for him.

“So where exactly are we going?” Hawke shouted to Isabela over the wind.

Isabela looked back at him in surprise, as though she had forgotten they were there. “Oh! Right!” she looked back at where they were heading. In the short amount of time they had nearly reached halfway across the water, and a town was growing in the distance. “Let’s go there!” 

Hawke nearly fell over from the sudden movement of Wailord turning towards the town and fell face forward, hugging the rubbery skin as tightly as he could.

It didn’t take long for them to reach the town and Wailord slowed to a stop a few yards away. Hawke slid off the Pokémon, somewhat awkwardly, and landed butt first in the shallow waters.

He heard Isabela chuckle, “that was so graceful!”

Hawke grumbled and stood up, soaked completely through from his waist down. A loud thump cause him to look up and see Charizard standing on the shore, looking at Hawke with a seemingly amused expression. “Don’t even start!” Hawke grumbled.

The others disembarked Wailord a lot more gracefully than Hawke and they all trudged to the shore with Isabela leading the way. 

As soon as they were on dry land Hawke looked over at the village curiously. “So where exactly are we?”

Aveline shook her head, exasperated. “Really Hawke, you need to get a map. That would be Redcliffe.”

Hawke looked up at the town literally sitting on a cliff. A large windmill stood tall over the sprawling town, and the infamous Redcliffe Castle loomed in the distance, it’s only access the large stone bridge. Various people wandered between the buildings, some of them looking curiously at the new Wailord in their harbor.

“Well!” Isabela said abruptly, “It was nice meeting you guys, but I have to get going now. People don’t plunder themselves!”

“Truer words have never been spoken!”

The group all turned to see a few people in long robes standing down the shore from them. The one that appeared to be the leader, an older man with a scraggly beard, held out a strange, black Pokéball with silver markings. “We will take that Wailord and Charizard now.”

Hawke instinctively stood between the robed people and Wailord. “Wailord belongs to Isabela, and Charizard is mine! You can’t take a Pokémon from their trainers!”

A younger looking man behind the leader scoffed. “Things are changing kid.”

The leader grinned wickedly and tossed the Pokéball. It hovered in the air momentarily before opening, and a thick, swirling, black smoke emanating from it. The smoke drifted lazily for a brief moment, and with alarming speed it darted past Hawke and hit Wailord, engulfing it. As though it was being recalled to its own Pokéball, Wailord was pulled into the black Pokéball and returned to the leader.

Isabela was silent for a second as her mind tried to process what just happened. “You...you STOLE WAILORD!” With an almost feral screech, Isabela lunged at the leader, only to bounce off of a wall of ice that appeared between them.

Hawke ran to Isabela and helped her get back on her feet. “How did you do that?! Pokémon can’t be captured from other trainers!”

The leader laughed cruelly. “Would you like another demonstration? Your Charizard is next!”

Hawke paled and turned back to the others. “Charizard, fly away! Now!”

The leader threw another black Pokéball, but the gust of wind created by Charizard’s wings blew it off course and into the water. Within seconds, Charizard was gone.

“You’re gonna pay for that kid!” The younger man yelled, but before he could take a step forward, a commotion came from above them.

About a dozen Redcliffe guards were heading towards the group, their swords drawn. “What is going on down here?” the woman leading the charge yelled.

The leader of the robed group frowned. “It appears we’ve overstayed our welcome.” In an instant, black smoke surrounded the robed figures, and in the next they were gone.

The guards reached the shore and ran to where the figures disappeared, while the leader approached Hawke and his friends. “Are you kids alright?”

Isabela fell to her knees, tears welling up in her eyes. “Wailord...”

 

Aveline addressed the guard. “We’re all fine, but they took Isabela’s Wailord before they vanished. They also threatened to steal Hawke’s Charizard, but it was able to escape.”

The guard nodded, flashing a sympathetic look at Isabela. “I was afraid of that. I’m sorry we didn’t get here sooner. My name is Joan, Captain of the Guard here in Redcliffe. I can answer any questions you have, but not here. Come with me.” Joan barked some orders to the other guards before motioning the trainers to follow her.

Isabela stared blankly where the thieves had disappeared, so Hawke and Merrill helped pull her to her feet and gently guided her to follow Joan into Redcliffe. 

Hawke looked up and could see Charizard flying safely overhead, but his relief quickly turned to guilt. Charizard was safe, but Wailord was not. He looked at Isabela and noticed that her face had changed from shock to cold determination. Their eyes met, and Hawke saw a fire burning in Isabela's eyes. Hawke nodded, and it was then that they made a silent vow. They were going to get Wailord back.

One way or another.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I am so sorry about how long it has been since I last uploaded T_T It has been over a year...  
> I never gave up on this fic, nor my others. Unfortunately, I started this just as my life was making some major changes and I was forced to put a lot of my writing on the back burner. But now, things are finally settling down and I can finally get back to this! I cannot guarantee an upload schedule, but I promise it won't be nearly as long until the next chapter!


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